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A patient who moves and cries out only when you pinch his or her trapezius muscle is said to be:

a. conscious and alert.
b. completely unresponsive.
c. responsive to verbal stimuli.
d. responsive to painful stimuli.

User Lodin
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1 Answer

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Final answer:

A patient who reacts only to painful stimuli, such as a pinch to the trapezius muscle, is responsive to painful stimuli and not to other sensory input. This should not be confused with reflex responses related to UMN disease.

Step-by-step explanation:

A patient who moves and cries out only when you pinch their trapezius muscle is said to be d. responsive to painful stimuli. This type of response indicates that the patient is not conscious and alert but can respond to a painful trigger. The absence of a response to verbal stimuli confirms that the patient is not responding to other types of sensory input. This situation is different from a check reflex response or a clasp-knife response, which is a sign of Upper Motor Neuron (UMN) disease where a muscle initially resists passive movement but quickly releases to a lower state of resistance.

A patient who moves and cries out only when you pinch his or her trapezius muscle is said to be responsive to painful stimuli.

This response suggests that the patient is conscious and able to feel pain, but not necessarily able to respond to verbal stimuli.

This assessment is commonly used in medical practice to evaluate a patient's level of consciousness and responsiveness.

User David Johnstone
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